Dalron officials say they really believe in downtown and they have put their money where their mouth is.

The company opened last September a student residence on 62 Elm St., at the corner of Durham St.

“We are only offering it to students who attend the McEwen School of Architecture,” Kayla Borkovich, the company’s leasing co-ordinator, said Thursday. “There are 18 suites; I believe we have 12 of the 18 currently rented.”

Each student has a private bedroom. Common areas and kitchens are shared, and each floor has two bathrooms. Rent ranges from $500-800 per month, based on the size of the room. Utilities and wifi are included.

“We had a slow start last year – construction wasn’t complete until most kids had found accommodations, but this year we’re filling up pretty fast,” Borkovich said.

The property had sat vacant for a while, so when a student intern brought forward the idea for a student residence, it appealed to Dalron management.

“They said there was a need downtown for the school of architecture,” Borkovich said. “That’s what sparked it.”

A rendering of one of the bedrooms at 62 Elm St., a new student residence for those studying at the architecture school. (supplied photo)

Borkovich said the company is a big advocate for the city core, “so anything we can do to get downtown Sudbury booming a little bit,” they will do.

The company has also planned a student all-access card, which would be available exclusively to students staying in the residence. It would offer them deals and discounts at downtown retailers. Borkovich said the aim is to keep spending money downtown.

“We’re approaching businesses right now to see if it’s something they’re interested in,” she said. “We’re getting mixed reviews from certain people, so it’s in the works right now. Some people want to participate, some don’t. Some people think that because they live downtown, they’ll automatically stay downtown.”

Perhaps the best perk of this student residence is the weekly housekeeping service Dalron provides. While cleaners do not go into bedrooms, they clean all common areas, besides the dirty dishes.

Being landlord to a cohort of students has been relatively painless, Borkovich said.

“It’s not bad; for the most part they’re pretty good, but they have to clean up after themselves, so if they leave dishes in the sink, I don’t deal with it,” she laughed. “Other than that, they’re pretty good. It’s just the kitchen — they don’t like to put their dishes away.”